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Original poster

Lively and boisterous....Would you say this is a negative comment?

26 replies

Aimsmum · 22/04/2005 10:54

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cod · 22/04/2005 10:54

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cod · 22/04/2005 10:55

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zebraX · 22/04/2005 10:56

wouldn't bother me if my child were described that way. I would look at it constructively, what does boisterous mean but "full of energy"? "Insecure and subdued" would be negative...

lunavix · 22/04/2005 10:56

Boisterous tends to mean a little difficult to control doesn't it?
Lively definately doesn't seem negative.

If you are confused/want to discuss the comments with the teacher, go for it.

morningpaper · 22/04/2005 10:56

lively = good, boisterous = not so good

cod · 22/04/2005 10:56

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Potty1 · 22/04/2005 10:58

I think its a positive.....my ds's teacher once said that she wouldn't mind if he swore at her, she just wanted him to speak - now they can't shut him up. She'll calm down when she gets a bit older.

Original poster
Aimsmum · 22/04/2005 11:00

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firestorm · 22/04/2005 11:28

i agree with zebraX i would far rather my child be called lively & boisterous than "insecure and subdued"

Original poster
Aimsmum · 22/04/2005 14:15

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zebraX · 22/04/2005 14:20

yes, coddy, who would b so foolish as 2 run the risk of being confused w/ me?

goldenoldie · 22/04/2005 15:14

"lively and boisterous" - translates as out-of-control and difficult to me.

Twiglett · 22/04/2005 15:19

in context it sounds a good comment, out of context not so good

I wouldn't get hung up on the semantics myself

Original poster
Aimsmum · 22/04/2005 15:48

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Original poster
Aimsmum · 22/04/2005 15:48

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Prettybird · 22/04/2005 16:23

I'd agree with the others - wouldr ather that than "passive and subdued".

But I can see your concern - the "althugh" suggest some form of "but".

Talk to the nursery and get a better feel for what they meant. FWIW, having met her I'd have described your dd as "lively and enthusiastic". Boisterous isn't the workd that would have come to mind - but then Princes Square isn't exactly the place to be boisterous in (although ds did his best !).

Maybe the nursery should have worded it along the lines of "lively and enthusaistic, she brings the same energy to other taks" (... and is a joy to teach !)

How is her ear?

Original poster
Aimsmum · 22/04/2005 16:50

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happymerryberries · 22/04/2005 17:21

I'm a teacher, and I agree with cod. 'A Bit, but'

Prettybird · 25/04/2005 12:58

Aimsmum - things are trundling along. A few wee issues I'm having to deal with - dh has fallen out with my brother and things are a bit awkward. We used to all go across to my mum and dad every Sunday night for a "family" dinner - dh wont go any more and is even unhappy about the fact that I'm still going across with ds. But we will get throguh it (I hope).

I asked dh what he thought about "although lively anf boisterous" and he too thought that the "althoguh" made it sound negative. Although ( now that you gave given us the whole paragraph, it deosn't sound so bad in context. Still wouldn't have described your dd that way though!

tigermoth · 25/04/2005 13:06

I havent read the other messages but regarding lively and boisterous, I hope not as teachers have referred to my sons this way. Usually spoken though. 'Enthusiastic, happy and energetic' are the words usually written reports, a bit like 'needs to focus more' which I take it means 'can be lazy'.

happymerryberries · 25/04/2005 17:48

Levely and boistrous on their own are not a danger sign in teacher speak. Coupled with 'finds it difficult to consider the needs of others', 'can sometimes make relevant comments in class' and 'can, on occasion, produce work of a satisfactory standard', you should worry.

L & B can ofetn be used to describe what my dear old non-pc ma used to call 'a real boy'.

Look at the whole picture is the key. I have used L & B to describe some of my y10 boys who have just got straight A*s in their module tests. They are lively, over chatty, sometimes silly, need to concentrate, crap at presentation, chaotic with their home work, utterly brilliant and the best fun I have all week!

happymerryberries · 25/04/2005 17:49

Needs to focus more is 'don't drift off topic' in my book, ie stop daydreaming Son, we have work to do! Lazy is 'needs to apply himself so that he meets his targets/reaches his potential.

Caligula · 25/04/2005 18:16

It sounds like there's a bit missing. "Although lively and boisterous, DD can apply similar enthusiasm to other tasks" just doesn't make sense. It sounds like one of those wonderful translations that you get from that website - is it Babelfish?

Original poster
Aimsmum · 27/04/2005 20:14

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CarrieG · 27/04/2005 20:31

Being a teacher myself, I strongly suspect your dd's teacher has written a generic report thus:

'xxx has had a brilliant/satisfactory/disastrous year. He/she is a lively/boisterous/challenging/quiet/withdrawn member of the group'...

...well, obviously not quite, but you get the gist!

Then she's filled the 'person & learner' field for every kid in the class by cut & pasting, then edited it rather clumsily for each individual...I'd not worry too much so long as it's backed up by nice comments @ Parents' Evening, tbh...